Slippery roads caused problems throughout the county this past Tuesday. One crash led to minor injuries to several youths in the Town of Merrill. Just after 7:30 a.m., a minivan being driven by a 39-year-old Merrill woman was traveling north on County Rd. K, lost control and struck a southbound minivan being driven by a 37-year-old Tomahawk man. Four youths in the vehicles were checked for injuries and at least one was transported to Ministry Good Samaritan Health Center. The 39-year-old Merrill woman was cited for Failure to Maintain Control. A total of 17 slide offs and one crash were investigated.
Tomahawk Firefighters and a deputy investigated a cabin fire early Wednesday morning in the Town of Skanawan. A neighbor on Cloverbelt Road spotted flames through the woods at 6:30 a.m. and phoned the owner who called 911. When firefighters, a deputy and the property owner arrived they found the cabin had burned to the ground overnight. Tomahawk’s Fire Chief told the investigating deputy that foul play was not suspected in the fire. The cabin did have a wood heater but the owner stated it had not been used in several days.
Traffic on US Hwy. 51 was slowed for over two hours after a semi-tractor caught fire near Irma Friday night. A deputy traveling on US Hwy. 51 spotted the truck on fire just south of County Rd. K in the Town of Birch at 4:22 p.m. The flat bed semi-truck had 200 gallons of diesel fuel in its tanks but firefighters from the Town of Russell Fire Department were able to control the flames before it reached them. Deputies who first arrived on the scene had to move back and stop traffic because the cab contained ammunition which was firing off. Deputies, along with Troopers from the Wisconsin State Patrol, detoured traffic around the incident for over two hours. No injuries were reported and traffic was flowing normally again by 7:30 p.m.
A 17-year-old Tomahawk woman was injured after a single vehicle crash Saturday morning in the Town of Skanawan. At 7:30 a.m., a cell 911 call reported a vehicle the woman was operating had left the roadway and struck a tree on Grundy Road to the east of County Rd. H. According to the deputy’s report, the driver failed to negotiate the curve on Grundy Road as she traveled north on the road. She was transported by Tomahawk EMS to Ministry Sacred Heart Hospital where she was treated and released. She was cited for unreasonable speed. The Tomahawk Fire Department also responded to the scene.
A 28-year-old Gleason woman was arrested Sunday afternoon on a warrant charge. The Langlade County Sheriff’s Office asked Lincoln County deputies to be on the lookout for a vehicle that was taken from a home on County Rd. CCC in Langlade County. A Lincoln County Deputy found the vehicle shortly after 12:30 p.m. and stopped it on State Rd. 17 at Smith Road in the Town of Merrill. Deputies confirmed the woman was wanted by the Wisconsin Department of Corrections for violating terms of her probation. She was arrested on the warrant and held in the Lincoln County Jail. She was also cited for operating without a valid driver’s license. Langlade County authorities advised their investigation continues, the vehicle was returned to the owner.
A 24-year-old Merrill man is in the Lincoln County Jail facing multiple charges after leading a deputy on a chase. At 5:42 p.m. the deputy was dispatched to an address on County Rd. K north of Merrill for a report that a disturbance had taken place and someone was possibly injured. As the deputy was nearing the scene the caller stated the suspect was leaving in a vehicle and was possibly intoxicated. The deputy was already in the area of the call and observed the suspect’s vehicle traveling south on County Rd. K approaching the City of Merrill. When the deputy turned around to stop the vehicle, the driver fled. The suspect led law enforcement on a short pursuit through the city before the pursuit was terminated by the deputy. The suspect continued to drive at a high rate of speed and eventually abandoned his vehicle on 4th Street in the City of Merrill. Deputies along with Merrill Police Officers checked the area on foot and eventually located the man at 6 p.m. in the 400 block of 7th Street. After deputies interviewed the victim of the disturbance the man was booked into the Lincoln County Jail on charges of domestic disorderly conduct, criminal damage to property, felony fleeing an officer and driving after revocation because his driver’s license was revoked for an OWI case. Several traffic citations will also be issued.
The number of car deer crashes is down by more than half with eight being reported this past week. A bear was struck Sunday night in the Town of Merrill. At 8 p.m. a Boulder Junction man who was traveling south on US Hwy. 51 struck the bear just north of County Rd C; the impact killed the animal.